Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE:
An automated peeling system
Field of the invention:
The present invention relates to the surface finishing of product such as root
vegetables, fruit,
nuts, which includes peeling and polishing where a degree of the outer layer
of the product is
removed.
Background of the invention:
Mechanical peeling methods are used on many food processing lines including
potato
processing lines for strip cut and sliced potato products. Peeling machines
can take many
forms including steam peelers, abrasive peelers and knife peelers. Other forms
of peeling
machine can employ chemical peeling methods like caustic and lye peeling. In
some cases
the peeling device will also be used to remove some surface defects and
blemishes. When
used herein the term "peeling" is intended to refer to any manor of outer
surface removal,
including but not limited to peeling by steam, abrasion, knife, chemical,
polishing, blanching
etc.
Peeling systems remove a thin layer of the product being peeled, ideally just
the layer
containing the peel or rind, with minimal or no removal and loss of the
adjacent good product
flesh. However, some of the good product is removed and all peeling systems
must deal with
this conflict of removing maximum peel and surface defect while minimizing
loss of good
product. The greatest challenge to a peeling system is the minimization of
good material loss
while maximizing the removal of peel or the unwanted outer surface. A
secondary concern to
the industry using peeling systems is the energy consumption of the system,
which should be
minimized while still removing the peel at economical production rates.
Traditionally peeling systems consisted of the device that removed the peel
from the product,
this may be an abrasive disk of set of rollers, or a series of spinning knife
blades, steam
pressure or a hot bath of caustic soda. These devices were often followed by
some equipment
to clean/separate the debris/peel from the good product, like a washer or
brusher or other dry
peel separation devices. Optical inspection devices were also deployed after
the peeling
device to evaluate the remaining peel on product and adjust the aggressiveness
of the peeling
device to remove more or less of the surface to bring the product to an
approximation of the
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required quality. Not over-peeling and loosing good volume from the finished
product, and
not under-peeling, producing a sub-standard product that is unappealing to
consumers.
A problem with all prior peeling systems is that the product being peeled does
not have
consistent peel, and where 80-85% may be easy to peel, 20 to 15% will be more
difficult. If
the system is set up to minimize the product loss from over-peeling, then that
20-15% will
not be peeled properly. If the peeler is adjusted to be more aggressive, to
make sure even the
difficult 20-15% is sufficiently peeled, then the remaining 80-85% will lose a
substantial
volume of their surface, reducing product yield.
It is an object of the invention to provide an efficient bulk peeling system
with reduced
product loss and reduced energy consumption.
Summary of the invention:
This invention incorporates a primary peeler, a sorting device and a secondary
peeler to
overcome this dual nature of the product being peeled.
Accordingly the present invention provides, as set out in the appended claims,
a peeling
system comprising a primary peeling device; a sorting device arranged to sort
product output
from the primary peeling device into peeled product and partially peeled
product; a secondary
peeling device arranged to receive the partially peeled product output from
the sorting device;
and a peel control system to monitor the peel quality of product detected in
at least one
position after the primary peeling device and control the peeling system in
response to same.
The peel control system may be configured to control the operation of one or
more
components of the peeling system. The peel control system may be configured to
control one
or more components of the peeling system in response to the detected peel
quality. The
components may comprise the primary peeling device, the sorting device and the
secondary
peeling device. The peel control system may be configured to control one or
more of the
primary peeling device, the sorting device and the secondary peeling device in
response to
the detected peel quality.
The peel control system may be configured to monitor the peel quality of bulk
product
detected in at least one position after the primary peeling device and control
the peeling
system in response to same. The peel control system may be configured to
monitor the
average peel quality of product detected in at least one position after the
primary peeling
device and control the peeling system in response to same.
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The peel control system may be configured to monitor the peel quality of
product detected in
at least one position after the primary peeling device and control the sorting
device of the
peeling system in response to same. The peel control system may be configured
to monitor
the peel quality of product detected in at least one position after the
primary peeling device
and additionally or alternatively control the primary peeling device of the
peeling system in
response to same.
Preferably the primary peeling device is controllable Preferably the primary
peeling device is
adjustable. The aggressiveness of the primary peeling device may be
adjustable. The peel
control system may be adapted to adjust the peel aggressiveness of the primary
peeling
device in response to the detected quality at the at least one position.
Preferably the sorting device is controllable. Preferably the sorting device
is adjustable. The
sorting device may be adjustable to vary a sort quality used in the sorting
process. The sorting
device may be adjustable to change the volume of product sorted as partially
peeled product
or peeled product. The peel control system may be adapted to control the sort
quality of the
sorting device in response to the detected quality at the at least one
position.
The at least one position may comprise the output of the primary peeling
device. The at least
one position may comprise the input of the secondary peeling device. The at
least one
position may comprise the output of the secondary peeling device.
Preferably the secondary peeling device is controllable. Preferably the
secondary peeling
device is adjustable. The aggressiveness of the secondary peeling device may
be adjustable.
The peel control system may be adapted to adjust the peel aggressiveness of
the secondary
peeling device in response to the detected quality at the output of the
secondary peeling
device.
The at least one position may comprise the output of the sorting device.
The peel control module may be a component of the sorting device.
Alternatively the peel
control module may be a standalone part of the peeling system.
The secondary peeling device and the first peeling device may be the same
peeling device.
The secondary peeling device may be incorporated within the first peeling
device. The
secondary peeling device may be a portion of the first peeling device.
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The peeling system may further comprise a secondary sorter configured to
divert product that
is insufficiently peeled back into the secondary peeling device for more
peeling.
The peeling system may further comprise means for conveying product from the
output of the
secondary peeling device through the sorting device, separate from the flow
from the primary
peeling device. The means for conveying may comprise a segmented channel of
the sorting
device. The peeling system may further comprise means for conveying any
remaining
insufficiently peeled product to the secondary peeling device to be re-peeled
by the secondary
peeling device. The peel control system may be configured to identify in an
image of the
product output from the sorting device the portion of the flow through the
sorting device that
comes from the primary peeling device, and the portion of the flow that comes
from the
secondary sorter.
The at least one position may be within the sorting device. The peel control
system is
configured to monitor the peel quality of product using data from the sorting
device. The data
may comprises image data. The peel control system may be integrated within the
sorting
device.
The at least one position may comprise the output of the peeling system. The
peel control
system may be configured to monitor the peel quality of product output from
the peeling
system, detected at the output of the peeling system and control the peeling
system in
response to same.
The present invention further provides a peeling process comprising: peeling
product using a
primary peeling device; sorting product output from the primary peeling device
into peeled
product and partially peeled product; re-peeling the partially peeled product;
monitoring the
peel quality of product detected in at least one position after the primary
peeling device; and
controlling the peeling process in response to same
The peeling process may further comprise adjusting the peel aggressiveness of
the primary
peeling device in response to the detected quality at the at least one
position.
Controlling the peeling process may comprise controlling the sort quality of
the sorting in
response to the detected quality at the at least one position. This
controlling step can achieve
changes in the volume of product sorted from the bulk flow, for example the
volume of
product sent to the secondary peeler.
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When used herein, the term "peel aggressiveness" relates to how much peel is
removed
during peeling. If the peel aggressiveness of a peeler is increased, this
means that more peel
will be removed by the peeler. A decrease in aggressiveness will result in
less peel being
removed by the peeler.
The at least one position may comprise the output of the primary peeling
device. The at least
one position may be in the path of the partially peeled product. The at least
one position may
be in the path of the re-peeled product Controlling the peeling process may
comprise
adjusting the peel aggressiveness of the re-peeling in response to the
detected quality of the
re-peeled product.
The at least one position may be in the path of the peeled product.
The peeling process may further comprise sorting the re-peeled product into
peeled product
and partially peeled product and re-peeling the partially peeled re-peeled
product.
Adjusting the aggressiveness of the secondary peeling device makes sure the
output of the
secondary peeling device is sufficient to be combined with the output from the
sorter (main
product flow). Ideally the quality of re-peeled product is equal to or greater
than the quality
of the peeled product.
The present invention further provides a computer program product comprising
instructions
which, when the program is executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry
out the
above process.
The present invention further provides a computer-readable storage medium
comprising
instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry
out the above
process.
It will be appreciated that by segregating product with difficult peel, the
present invention can
remove more difficult to remove peel while reducing overall product loss and
maintaining
low energy consumption. This is achieved by avoiding having to set the first
peeling device
to peel all product to quality. The peel control system within the peeling
system of the present
invention ensures that difficult to remove peel is directed to a secondary
peeling device to be
re-peeled. One example of control the peeling system may be increasing the
aggressiveness
of the peeling device when the percentage of product being sent for re-peeling
increases
beyond a desirable threshold. Another example might be adjusting the sort
quality of the
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sorting device to divert or kick out higher quality product in response to
quality of the peeled
product dropping.
Brief Description of the Drawings:
Embodiments of the invention will be described, by way of example only, with
reference to
the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a schematic of one embodiment of peeling system in accordance with
the present
invention.
Detailed Description of the Drawings:
Figure 1 shows one embodiment of peeling system in accordance with the present
invention.
The primary peeler 2 is set to handle all the product 4 to be peeled and is
set up to correctly
and sufficiently peel the majority of the product, the remaining percentage
will be peeled, but
to a lesser degree and sub-standard. The sorting device (sorter) 6 then takes
the flow 8 of the
peeler and sorts the under peeled and below quality product 10, diverting it
to the secondary
peeler. The good correctly peeled product 12 continues to the output of the
system. This
product is peeled to the required specification which may be present. The
secondary peeler 14
is set up to make sure the under peeled product is completely peeled and makes
specification.
If the secondary peeler has to over-peel some of the remaining product to make
sure it is all
to the correct specification, then there will be some losses, but these will
be much lower than
what would have been lost from the majority of the main flow if 100% of
product was peeled
with the same aggressiveness. The complete system is dynamic and needs to self-
adjust based
on the quality and variations in the incoming unpeeled product.
A peel control system 16 is required to monitor one or various points in the
system and
balance the various system operations of primary-peeling and/or sorting and/or
secondary
peeling. The peel control system 16 monitors peel quality by image analysis
using images
from at least one point in the system which could be images supplied by the
sorting system.
Alternatively, the images used may not come from the sorter but from an
independent camera
or sensor. Other ways of monitoring peel quality may be employed in
alternative
embodiments. The sensor or camera may be located after the sorter. The quality
Q, of the
product flow out of the sorter is a primary control point for the system as
the purpose of the
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system is to produce consistent quality peeled product. The detected quality
may be used by
the peel control system to control parameters of one or more parts of the
peeling system. One
example of a parameter is the aggressiveness of the primary peeler. The peel
control system
16 in this embodiment adjusts the aggressiveness of the primary peeler 2 so
that a high
percentage of the product is correctly peeled, and the sorting device 6 is
configured to divert
the remaining percentage of under-peeled product 10 to the secondary peeler 14
The peeling
system needs to be able to adapt depending on the type and properties of the
product to be
peeled. Different varieties of the same type of product will have different
peel qualities and
some varieties will be easier to peel than others. Likewise, products from
different sources
may have different peel qualities and products from some suppliers or regions
will be easier
to peel than others. The stage of the season can also influence peel, so for
example product
harvested early in a growing season typically will require less aggressive
peeling. Such
variation can occur between consecutive batched being fed into the peeling
system so it is
essential the system is dynamic. When peeling easier to peel product, then the
aggressiveness
of the primary peeler 2 can be reduced by the peel control system 16, and less
good product
volume is lost, until a high percentage of the easy to peel product is
correctly and sufficiently
peeled. The sorting device 6 is set up to divert the remaining percentage of
under-peeled
product to the secondary peeler 14 where the remaining peel is removed. When
the product to
be peeled has peel that is more difficult, the peel control system in this
embodiment increases
the aggressiveness of the primary peeler 2, but only enough to peel a high
percentage of this
tougher product variety correctly and to specification. The sorting device 6
continues to
divert the remaining percentage of under-peeled product to the secondary
peeler 14 where the
remaining peel is removed.
This is just one example of operation of the system shown in figure 1. Other
methods of
operation are possible in accordance with the present invention.
In figure 1, U represents unpeeled quality, Op represents quality from primary
peeler 2, Of
represents quality finished after sorting device 6, Q,- represents quality
diverted from sorting
device 6, Qs represents quality after secondary peeler 14. Ep represents
energy consumption
of the primary peeler 2, Es, represents energy consumption of the secondary
peeler 14. Lp
represents losses from the primary peeler 2 and L, represents losses from the
secondary peeler
14.
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The peel control system 16 may monitor data and images from more than one
source to
control the performance and operation of at least one of the primary peeler,
the sorting device
and the secondary peeler.
In one embodiment of the system an inspection method can be placed on the
output of the
secondary peeler 14. Images from this location are used to adjust the
aggressiveness of the
secondary peeler to make sure the output 18 of the secondary peeler is
sufficient to be
combined with the output from the sorter (main product flow)
The system can further have a secondary sorter (not shown) after the secondary
peeler,
wherein the secondary sorter is configured to divert product that is
insufficiently peeled back
on a conveyance method which brings the under-peeled product back into the
secondary
peeler 14 for more peeling.
Another embodiment of the system can convey the output of the secondary peeler
14 through
a segmented channel of the sorting device 6, keeping the flow 8 from the
primary peeler 2
separate from the flow from the secondary peeler 14 The sorting device 6 can
then inspect
and sort this secondary stream, diverting any remaining insufficiently peeled
product out to
be re-peeled by the secondary peeler 14. The good correctly peeled product
continues-on with
the good product 12 from the main flow. In this embodiment the peeler control
system should
identify in the image the portion of the sorting device that comes from the
primary peeler 2,
and the portion of the flow that comes from the secondary sorter.
In one embodiment a single unit may be used to monitor quality at more than
one location.
For example, a single camera/sensor unit may be able to monitor quality at the
output of the
sorter and at the output of the secondary peeler. The unit may with utilise
separate imaging
feeds from sensors/cameras at these locations
In contrast to a multi-pass (or incremental) peeler where individual product
in a product flow
output from a peeler is identified as needing more peeling and sorted from the
flow to be fed
back into the peeler a second or subsequent time, the present invention is a
one-pass complete
peel system.
Rather than passing under peeled product multiple times through a peeler until
it is peeled,
the present invention maintains a constant flow of product through the system.
This is
desirable as the longer peeled product spends in the peeling system, the more
oxidising of the
flesh occurs. If the product spends too much time within the peeling system,
the flesh
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oxidises and the quality of the product reduces. The present invention
comprises peeling the
majority of product in the flow to a desired quality using the primary peeler,
and using a
second peeler to address difficult to peel product. This ensures a constant
flow of product in,
through, and out of the system. This provides an improvement in the capacity
of the peeling
system over prior art systems. Damage to product is also reduced by the single
pass.
Rather than assessing the quality of individual product, the present invention
assesses the
quality of the bulk flow of product to ensure it meets specification and makes
adjustments to
the peel system as required if the quality of the bulk flow of product is
below specification.
The assessment can take place at one point in the system or at multiple
points. The
assessment may comprise determining an average peel quality from the product
flow.
The peel control system of the present invention is not a single entity or
piece of hardware,
such as a sorter or camera. It is a whole system which works together to
control the peel
process and achieve a desired quality in the product output from the peeling
system. The peel
control system may be configured to control the aggressiveness of the primary
peeler for
example. The peel control system may be further configured to control the
volume of product
sent to the second peeler. The peel control system may be configured to only
control the
volume of product sent to the second peeler. It will be appreciated that the
peel control
system may be configured to control this volume by controlling the sorting
parameters of the
sorting device until the desired volume of product being sent to the second
peeler is achieved.
These examples are non-limiting. There are multiple ways to configure the peel
control
system according to the present invention, using information determined at one
or multiple
points throughout the peeling system. Likewise there are multiple components
of the peeling
system which may be controlled by the peel control system There are multiple
parameters
which may be changed throughout the peeling system by the peel control system
in
accordance with the present invention. The whole system is dynamic in this
regard.
The present invention allows for the ability to set a desired grade of peeled
product. The peel
control system is able to control the peeling system to output product of the
desired grade
once set. The peeler and sorter work together to provide the desired grade
peeled product.
The words "comprises/comprising" and the words "having/including" when used
herein with
reference to the present invention are used to specify the presence of stated
features, integers,
steps or components but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or
more other
features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof
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It is appreciated that certain features of the invention, which are, for
clarity, described in the
context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a
single
embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention which are, for
brevity, described
in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in
any suitable
sub-combination.
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